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Some 400,000 children are missing out on life-saving vaccines even as shots for malaria and cervical cancer are planned for next year.
During World Immunisation Week, which ended at the weekend, it was disclosed that Kenya would pilot malaria vaccine trials while 3.5 million girls also get vaccinated against cervical cancer.
A vaccine for the nearly fatal meningitis, currently a major concern in Nigeria, is also being rolled out in Kenya.
However, the immunisation community says the country is not reaching almost a third of its 1.5 million children born annually with crucial vaccines.
At a meeting held in Machakos in March by the two levels of government, health donors and NGOs, Health Cabinet Secretary Cleopa Mailu said immunisation coverage had stagnated at 80 per cent.
"Let us critically re-examine and interrogate our immunisation performance with a view to improving coverage that has stagnated at around 80 per cent over the last few years," said Dr Mailu.
Even with the national coverage of 80 per cent instead of a desired 90 per cent, the figures vary dramatically by region.
In northern Kenya, less than half of the children are being vaccinated, with just about a quarter in Mandera County.
This state of affairs was partially blamed on the devolution of health services, with county governments said to have denied immunisation programmes of crucial funding and political will.
Every child
"We much reach every child everywhere," said Pfizer Corporate Affairs Director Margaret Olele.
Pfizer Inc, an American pharmaceutical corporation, has just introduced the new vaccine, Nimenrix, against the bacterial infection meningitis that is almost always fatal.
Ms Olele said the meningitis vaccine was important for Kenya at this time because of the ongoing outbreak in Nigeria that had claimed 800 lives by last week.
"Kenya is among 16 countries in Africa lying on the Meningitis Belt. Through travelling and mass gathering, the disease spreads rapidly and with significant impact on lives," said Olele.
The World Health Organisation warns the disease can be transmitted from person-to-person through droplets of respiratory or throat secretions from carriers.
Close and prolonged contact or coughing spreads the disease.
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